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Playing around with polarisers, like those found in polarising sunglasses, provides a good introduction to polarisation. Some exciting results can already be obtained by stacking and rotating two or three polariser sheets.

Mechanical stresses inside a transparent piece of plastic (like a ruler) can be visualized by inserting the piece in between polarisers. This way, one can diagnose where this piece is most likely to break.

The amount of dissolved sugar in water or a soft drink can be determined without actually touching the liquid. Sugar has the intriguing property that it rotates polarisation. So, by measuring the amount of polarisation rotation one can determine the amount of sugar.